Club Announces 2017 Community Service Grants
11 Yonkers Community Organizations have been awarded the Club's 2017 Community Service Grants. Two organizations - the Family Service Society of Yonkers and the Yonkers Public Library received grants of $750 each while the remaining 9 organizations received grants of $500 each. Chair of the Club's Grants Committee, Harvey Bernstein said the Committee reviewed many applications and found it quite difficult to decide among the deserving projects presented by the local community organizations. "The needs are great and our resources are limited", he said. Club President Mahbub Ahmad commended committee members for their diligence. “I am happy that we were able to support a wide range of community service activities with our grants,” he said. He hoped in the future the Club would be able to support more projects with more funding.
Under the terms of the grants, within six months, each recipient organization is required to make a presentation to the Club outlining the use of the grant and its impact on the local community.
The Family Service Society of Yonkers received the grant for their Kinship Support Program which provide for educational, cultural, and recreational opportunities for at-risk children being raised by Grandparents.
The Yonkers Public Library will use the grant for it's new Telescope Lending Program for the scientific engagement for patrons of the Yonkers Public Library.
Among the $500 grant recipients, the Queen’s Daughters Day Care Center will use the grant for it's “Get Moving, Get Fit” program to provide for tricycles and playground equipment.
The grant for the Greyston Foundation will support Greyston Community Gardens and Environmental Education Program – Hope and Dreams Project – on Buena Vista Avenue.
Another grant will support the Yonkers Historical Society in continuing Publication of quarterly newsletter The Historian.
For CLUSTER Community Services, the grant will provide for the CLUSTER Summer Camp Program to offer full and partial scholarships to a 6-week summer camp. Many of the scholarship recipients are from very low-income households.
The $500 grant will support the Fine Arts Orchestral Society of Yonkers in providing a free Symphonic Concert by the Yonkers Philharmonic Orchestra, specifically to help pay musician’s fees during the Winter Concert season 2017-2018.
With the grant, the Hudson Valley Justice Center will provide 5 educational outreach presentations in Yonkers to inform residents of their legal rights and options in areas that include immigration, housing, and consumer law.
The YMCA of Yonkers will use the $500 for its “Community Dining” – a program that addresses hunger on multiple levels: children, teenagers, adults, older adults, and the homeless.
Westhab, Inc. will use the grant to supplement it's activities at the Food Pantry at Westhab’s Elm Street Community Resource Center.
And the final recipient Science Barge/Groundworks, Blue Door has received the award for its innovative “BargeSpeak/ArtSpeak” project – Two three-hour workshops on the Hudson River to create and sustain the bond connecting the arts, history and the environment.